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Can't decide what to watch? Just ask JioHotstar's AI
Jio and OpenAI's collab will introduce a voice and text interface powered by ChatGPT into JioHotstar's app

Can't decide what to watch? Just ask JioHotstar's AI

Feb 19, 2026
03:45 pm

What's the story

JioHotstar, an Indian OTT platform, has teamed up with OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT. The collaboration will introduce a voice and text interface powered by ChatGPT into JioHotstar's app. This innovative feature aims to revolutionize content discovery for Indian audiences by replacing traditional keyword searches and menu navigation with natural language conversations in multiple languages.

Enhanced experience

AI assistant will provide context-aware recommendations

The AI-powered assistant will answer conversational queries like, "My parents are visiting, suggest something we can all watch together," or "We are twins and only watch films about identical twins." The feature promises context-aware recommendations, including options not explicitly searched for by users. It also extends to live sports, allowing viewers to explore key moments, scores, player highlights during matches.

Industry impact

Uday Shankar on AI's transformative role

Uday Shankar, Vice Chairman of JioHotstar, emphasized the transformative role of AI in the media and entertainment industry. He said it disrupts every aspect of the value chain from conceptualization to monetization. "As a tech-native, user-first platform, JioHotstar is embedding AI at the very core of the user experience," Shankar said. He added that their partnership with OpenAI would let viewers discover and engage with content using their voice.

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CEO insights

Shift from passive consumption to interactive engagement

Fidji Simo also spoke about the shift from passive consumption to interactive engagement. She said, "Traditionally, entertainment is a one-way experience where you passively consume content - AI completely changes that dynamic." Simo added that through their partnership with JioHotstar, they're bringing personalized AI directly into entertainment and live sport.

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Implementation strategy

New discovery experiences within ChatGPT

The AI-powered feature will be launched in phases, starting with select live and on-demand experiences. Apart from the in-app integration, JioHotstar and OpenAI plan to launch new discovery experiences within ChatGPT itself. Users looking for entertainment recommendations inside ChatGPT will get contextual suggestions and streaming links from JioHotstar's catalog, creating a two-way integration between the platforms.

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